The Great Recession

The Great Recession officially lasted from December 2007 to June 2009, making it the longest recession since World War II. Sharp cutbacks in consumer spending ultimately resulted in the most dramatic employment contraction of any recession since the Great Depression. CLMS researched and evaluated how severely the recession impacted the labor market, highlighting particular demographics (such as teens and young adults) and labor market infrastructures.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Great Recession’s Impact on the Teen Labor Market and the Role of Education

The Great Recession of 2007-2009 affected American workers across the nation, especially workers under age 25 and those who had not completed high school. The recession changed employment opportunities, structures, and policies, and many demographics have yet to experience the slow return and growth of the labor market. The following research dissects how to aid and prepare the country’s youngest workers, especially through summer jobs, internships, and apprenticeships as introductions into the labor market, in tandem with education retention programs.

CLMS researchers found that more programs, structure, and opportunities for jobs need to be created in the private and public sectors for high school and college-aged youth. Research suggests these opportunities aid financial assistance, help career development, and invigorate the labor market for economic and societal benefits as a whole.  For example, poorly educated adults, especially males and inner-city black men, are at a disadvantage in the labor market, and they lack the resources and time to participate in civic duties such as voting, volunteering, or participating in community activities.

Recapturing the American dream
The Continued Depression in Teen Labor Markets in Massachusetts and the U.S.: The Economic Case for Increased Funding for Youth Workforce Development Programs to Boost Teen Employment Prospects
The Continued Crisis in Teen Employment in the U.S. and Massachusetts: The Absence of Any Teen Job Growth in the Recovery from the Great Recession, Low Income and Minority Youth Fare Worst
The Dismal State of the Nation's Teen Summer Job Market, 2008-2012, and the Employment Outlook for the Summer of 2013
The Complete Breakdown in the High School-to-Work Transition of Young, Non-College Enrolled High School Graduates in the U.S.; The Need for an Immediate National Policy Response
The continued collapse of the nation's teen summer job market
The Labor Force Behaviors, Labor Market Experiences, and Labor Market Outcomes of the Nation's Adults with No Post-Secondary Education, 2000-2010
Out with the young and in with the old
The Employment, Earnings, Incarceration, and Childbearing Experiences and Family Incomes of the Nation's Young Adult High School Dropouts and Their Better Educated Peers in 2006-2008
The Employment, Annual Earnings, Household Incomes, and Public Assistance Income Recipiency Experiences of U.S. Native-Born Adults 16-74 Years With No Post-Secondary Education

“The Great Socioeconomic Divergence”

Households with incomes in the top quartile of the United States held 87 percent of the nation’s wealth in 2004, and recessions, such the one experienced from 2007-2009, only further increase gaps in income and wealth. The highly unequal distribution of wealth in the United States means that those with household wealth in the bottom quartile held negative net worth (such as through debt, loans etc.), and that households at the 90th percentile had over 4,000 times the wealth of a household at the 10th percentile. Such disparities hold social and economic implications, where households in the bottom quartile face disadvantages in employment and education opportunities due to financial instabilities, lack of support from the community and government, and general hardships.

The following research addressed such disparities, and who benefited most (and least) in the post-recession recovery. This includes highlighting low employment rates among low-income workers amidst growing employment, salaries for high-income workers, and larger labor market contexts during this period. In short, while the recession has officially ended, the effects are still lasting for various communities and demographics.

Labor underutilization problems of U.S. workers across household income groups at the end of the great recession
The Labor Market Problems of Massachusetts' Workers in the Recovery from the Great Recession: The Great Socioeconomic Divergence
The great recession of 2007-2009, the lagging jobs recovery, and the missing 5-6 million national labor force participants in 2011
Who has benefitted from the post-great recession recovery? A new look at the growth performance of jobs, wages, corporate profits, and stock price indices during the first two years of recovery
The impact of rising poverty on the nation's young families and their children, 2000-2010
Wealth in America
The depression in blue collar labor markets in Massachusetts and the U.S.
Underemployment problems in U.S. labor markets in 2009
The great recession of 2007-2009
The Job Dislocation and Re-employment Experiences of America's Older Workers During the Great Recessionary Period of 2007-2009